Fence



(No Model.) L. CLARK. FENCE.

No. 580.847. Patented Apr. 20, 1897. i! in gg. M.

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UNITED STATES ATENT Prion.

LEANDER CLARK, OF GREENVILLE, OHIO.

FENCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 580,847, dated April 20, 1897.

Application filed March 28, 1896.

To a/ZZ whom it may concern.-

`Be it known that I, LEANDER CLARK, acitizen of the United States, residing at Greenville, in the county of Darke and lState of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Fence, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to fences, and particularly to an improved construction of stay to facilitate the connection of the runners therewith, said stay being formed of sheet metal and being bent upon a line parallel with its longitudinal center to provide a V-shaped cross-sectional construction.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will appear in the following description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a View of a fence constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail view in perspective of the post forming a part of the improved fence. Fig. 3 is a detail view in perspective of the anchor and the contiguous extremity of the post, the latter being shown as seen before application to the anchor. Fig. 4 is a detail View in perspective of a portion of one of the stays. Fig. 5 is a plan View of the blank from which the improved stay is constructed. Fig. 6 is a view of a portion of one of the stays and the contiguous portion of a runner, showing in full lines the inclined position of the stay as when applied to the runner and in dotted lines the normal or upright position thereof. Fig. 7 is a partial rear View of one of the stays to show the deflection of the intermediate portion of the runner.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures of the drawings.

1 designates runners which extend through openings in posts 2 and are connected at points between the posts by stays 3.

The post which forms a part of the improved fence is of V-shaped cross-sectional construction and consists of a blank of sheet metal bent parallel with and approximately upon its longitudinal center to form wings 4 and 5 of different widths. The wide wing or flange 4 is provided with a plurality of openings 6 for the reception of the runners, said Serial No. 585,272. (No model.)

openings being longitudinally elongated or consisting of slots parallel with the angle of the post, the outer side of each opening being closed by inwardly-extendin g terminallyseparated tongues 7, which when arranged in alinelnent prevent the detachment of the runner from the post. I may also employ intermediate round runner-openings S, of which the outer sides are closed by tongues 9, as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

The lower end of the post is fitted in a keeper formed upon an anchor-plate 11,adapt ed to be secured to an anchor-stake 10 or its equivalent, said keeper being V-shaped in plan to correspond with the cross-sectional construction of the post and consisting of upstruck parallel-sided tongues 12 integral with the anchor-plate, as shown clearly in Fig. 3. The lower end of the post is longitudinally slitted, as shown at 13, to form ears 14, which are arranged in alinelnent with the post before the latter is iitted in the keeper, as shown in Fig. 3, and which are bent outwardly perpendicular to the planes of the wings or flanges of the post after insertion in the keeper, as shown in Fig. 2, to prevent dtachment.

The stays which I employ in connection with the above construction for connecting the runners at intermediate points are preferably struck from sheet metal and are bent upon their longitudinal centers to form the approximately V-shaped construction illustrated in Fig. 4, and the wings or flanges 15 and 16 of each set are provided, respectively, with runner-seats 17 and 18, located in pairs. These seats consist of the rounded approximately opposite extremities of slots 19 and 20,havin g communicating openings 2l formed in the edges of the Wings or flanges. The upper slot 19 of each pair is located with its lower extremity or seat slightly below the plane of the upper extremity or seat of the slot 20, forming the other member of the said pair, whereby when the stay is applied with its approximately opposite seats in engagement with a runner the portion of the runner between said seats is slightly bent or deflected to prevent displacement of the stay parallel with the runner. In Fig. 6 I have shown the inclined position which the stay must assume in applying it to a runner which IOO has been previously stretched, said position being necessary by .reason of the diagonally opposite disposition of 'the months or inletopenings of the slots in which the runnerseats are formed. In Fig. Z is shown the relative positions of the seats and the bent or deiiected portion of the runner between the seats after the stay has been straightened or forced to its upright position.

Before the runners are nally tightened the stays may be applied thereto by inclining them, as shown in Fig. 6, thus providing for the running of the wires before the stays are applied, this operation being made possiblel by the extension of the slots outwardly fromr their seats or in opposite directions from their 'contiguous ends.

The advantage of the vertically elongated or slotted openings in the post for the reception of the runners resides in the fact that vertical ymovement of the runners independently of the post or vertical movement ofthe post independently of the runners may be accomplished. Vertical movement of kthe runners is desirable in order `to allow a limited resilience thereofand in order to vfacilitate the Yapplication thereto of the stays,and independent vertical movement of the post is desirable in applying the lower end thereof to the anchor-plate or removing the same therefrom when such operation becomes necessary.

The stub post 10 may, if preferred, be omitted, in which case the anchor-plate Will be arranged below the surface of the soil and the post will be extended -sufciently below said plate toinsure lateral stiffness.

Various changes inV the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacriiicin g any of the advantages of this invention.

Having described my invention, what I claim is- In a fence, the combination of runners, a stay of cross-sectionally V-shaped construction provided in its Wings with pairs of upper and lower slots 'formed parallel with the free edges of the/wings, the lower end of one slot of a pair being approximately in the horizontal plane of the upper end of the other slot of said pair, and said slots beingprovided with lateral openings extending through the yedges of the wings and arranged approximately'at the centers of the slots, the slots being extended in opposite'directions from their seat ends beyond their lateral openings to allow inclination of the-stays in applying them to the previously-arranged runners,'l

LEANDER CLARK.

Witnesses:

W. N. STUBBs, CYRUs MINNICH. 

